120 years ago, in 1896 Hungary celebrated the millennial anniversary of the Settlement of Magyars in the country, in the framework of which festivities were held across Hungary.

There was a boom in the fields of culture, sports, press and the theater life of the country. Several entertainment and public buildings were erected in Budapest in the framework of city and infrastructure development projects. Such buildings were, for example, the Comedy Theater, Gallery of Arts and the Museum of Applied Arts. Construction work related to Andrássy Street, Grand Boulevard and Millennium Subway were finished. The peak program of the festive year was the Hungarian National Millennium Exhibition set up in City Park on nearly 520,000 square meters. Our exhibition, open between April 20 and July 16, 2016, is going to present this event. You can have a look at the exhibition entitled Millennium Dreams in the Catalog Space of National Széchényi Library, on Floor 7. It will commemorate the 120th anniversary of the Hungarian National Millennium Exhibition of 1896.

The exhibition of National Széchényi Library presents the Millennium series of events from several aspects, with the help of books, magazines, photographs, music sheet and postcards to be found in the General as well as Special Collections of the Library.

In addition to invitations cards inviting to official programs, such as the opening ceremony of the exhibition or celebration of the 29th anniversary of coronation, you can have a look at the site layout showing the thematic arrangement of the pavilions. You can also have a look at relics of the Ancient Buda entertainment complex set up on the territory of the Amusement Park, which closed its doors just recently. In addition to the special magazine of the onetime exhibition and photographs taken of its buildings, entry tickets to the exhibition will also be presented.

The memory of the Hungarian National Millennium Exhibition of 1896 is preserved by books published on the occasion of the festive year and by special papers advertising the events as well as surviving diaries and memoirs. They all help recollect the atmosphere of the millennium dreams of a time when, as a period diary puts it, “the entire Budapest was illuminated”.


The exhibition will be open during the opening hours of National Széchényi Library, i.e. Tuesday to Saturday, from 9 a.m. until 8 p.m. When you are planning your visit, please, bear in mind that our pay desk is closed at 7 p.m.